National firsts | |
---|---|
Satellite | West Germany |
Rockets | |
Maiden flights | |
Retirements |
|
Crewed flights | |
Orbital | 9 |
Total travellers | 22 |
1969 saw humanity step onto another world for the first time. On 20 July 1969, the Apollo 11 Lunar Module, Eagle, landed on the Moon's surface with two astronauts aboard. Days later the crew of three returned safely to Earth, satisfying U.S. President John F. Kennedy's 1962 challenge of 25 May 1961, that "this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth." [1] [2]
There were four Apollo missions in total in 1969, three of which traveled to the Moon, with Apollo 12 also landing on the surface. The success of the Apollo program was a testament to the efforts of over 500,000 American engineers, scientists and technicians.
In 1969, the Soviet Union's space program had success with the docking of two crewed spacecraft as well as the success of their Venus and Lunar probes. The Soviets, however, suffered severe blows to their crewed Lunar aspirations when their N1 rocket failed twice during two 1969 launches.
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
January | |||||||
5 January 06:28 [3] | Molniya-M / Blok VL | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Venera 5 | Heliocentric | Venus lander | 16 May 1969 | Successful | |||
Lander operated for 53 minutes in the atmosphere of Venus. | |||||||
10 January 05:51 [3] | Molniya-M / Blok-VL | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Venera 6 | Heliocentric | Venus lander | 17 May 1969 | Successful | |||
Lander operated for 51 minutes in the atmosphere of Venus. | |||||||
12 January 12:10 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 263 (Zenit-2) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 20 January 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
14 January 07:30 | Soyuz | Baikonur LC-31 | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 4 | RVSN | Low Earth | Crewed orbital flight | 17 January 1969 | Successful | ||
First docking between two crewed spacecraft (with Soyuz 5) | |||||||
15 January 07:04 | Soyuz | Baikonur LC-1/5 | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 5 | RVSN | Low Earth | Crewed orbital flight | 18 January 1969 | Successful | ||
First docking between two crewed spacecraft (with Soyuz 4) | |||||||
20 January 04:14 [6] | Proton-K/D | Baikonur Site 81/23 | |||||
Soyuz 7K-L1 (Zond-1969A) | Selenocentric | Test flight | 20 January 1969 | Failure | |||
One of the RD-0210 engines in the second stage failed, resulting in automatic shutdown of the vehicle. Capsule was successfully recovered after successful launch abort. | |||||||
22 January 16:48 [7] | Delta C1 | Cape Canaveral SLC-17 | |||||
OSO 5 | NASA | Low Earth | Astronomy | 2 April 1984 [5] | Successful | ||
22 January 19:10 [8] | Titan IIIB | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
OPS 7585 (GAMBIT-3 4319) | NRO | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 3 February 1969 [5] | Partial failure | ||
Apogee was too high as the Agena rocket stage failed to switch off at a correct time. [9] | |||||||
23 January 09:15 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Kosmos 264 (Zenit-4M) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 5 February 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
25 January 11:10 [6] | Tsyklon-2A | Baikonur Site 90/19 | |||||
Kosmos 265 (US-AO No.5) | Low Earth | Naval surveillance | 23 January 1969 | Failure | |||
30 January 06:46 [8] | Delta E1 | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
ISIS 1 | CSA | Medium Earth | Science | In orbit | Successful | ||
February | |||||||
1 February 12:11 [4] | Vostok-2M | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 265 (Meteor-1) | RVSN | Low Earth | Meteorology | 1 February 1969 | Failure | ||
5 February 06:46 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
KH-4B 6 (OPS 3890) | CIA | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 24 February 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
P-801 2 (OPS 2644) | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
6 February 00:39 [7] | Delta M | Cape Canaveral SLC-17A | NASA | ||||
Intelsat III F-3 | Intelsat | Geostationary | Communications | In orbit | Successful | ||
7 February 13:59 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 265 (DS-P1-Yu No.21) | RVSN | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 1 May 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
9 February 21:09 [7] | Titan IIIC | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | |||||
TACSAT-1 (OPS 0757) | USAF | Geostationary | Communications | In orbit | Successful | ||
19 February 06:48 [6] | Proton-K / Blok D | Baikonur Site 81/24 | |||||
Luna 15a + Lunokhod 1A (Ye-8 №201) | Selenocentric | Lunar lander and rover | 19 February 1969 | Failure | |||
Engine failure in the first stage, rocket crashed 15 km from the pad. | |||||||
21 February 09:18 | N1/L3 | Baikonur LC-110/38 | RVSN | ||||
Zond L1S-1 | RVSN | Selenocentric | Test flight | 21 February | Failure | ||
Dummy LK | RVSN | Selenocentric | Mass simulator | 21 February | Failure | ||
25 February 01:29 [7] | Atlas SLV-3C Centaur-D | Cape Canaveral LC-36 | |||||
Mariner 6 | NASA | Heliocentric | Mars flyby | In orbit | Successful | ||
25 February 10:20 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 266 (Zenit-2) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 5 March 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
26 February 07:47 [7] | Delta E1 | Cape Canaveral LC-17B | |||||
ESSA-9 | ESSA | Low Earth (SSO) | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | ||
26 February 08:30 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 267 (Zenit-4) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 6 March 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
March | |||||||
3 March 16:00 | Saturn V | KSC LC-39A | NASA | ||||
Apollo 9 CSM Gumdrop | NASA | Low Earth | Crewed orbital flight | 13 March 1969 | Successful | ||
Apollo 9 LM Spider | NASA | Low Earth | Test flight | 13 March 1969 | Successful | ||
First crewed orbital test of lunar module | |||||||
4 March 16:48 [8] | Titan IIIB | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
KH-8 Gambit 3 (OPS 4248) | USAF | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 18 March 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
Apogee was too high as the Agena rocket stage failed to switch off at a correct time. [9] | |||||||
5 March 13:04 [10] | Kosmos-2I | Kapustin Yar Site 86/4 | |||||
Kosmos 268 (DS-P1-Yu No.18) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 9 May 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
5 March 17:25 [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132/2 | |||||
Kosmos 269 (Tselina-O-4) | Low Earth | ELINT | 21 October 1978 [5] | Successful | |||
6 March 12:15 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 270 (Zenit-4 No.52) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 14 March 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
15 March 12:15 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 271 (Zenit-4 No.53) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 23 March 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
17 March 17:25 [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132/2 | |||||
Kosmos 272 (Sfera No.4) | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful | |||
18 March 07:40 [8] | Atlas F-OV1 | Vandenberg ABRES-A2 | |||||
OV1-17 | USAF | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 5 March 1970 [5] | Successful | ||
OV1-17A ORBISCAL | USAF | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 24 March 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
OV1-18 | USAF | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 28 August 1972 [5] | Successful | ||
OV1-19 | USAF | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
19 March 21:38 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
KH-4A 50 (OPS 3722) | CIA | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 24 March 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
P-11 (OPS 2285) | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 6 December 1971 [5] | Successful | ||
22 March 12:15 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 273 (Zenit-2 No.72) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 30 March 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
24 March 10:10 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 274 (Zenit-4 No.54) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 1 April 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
26 March 12:30 [4] | Vostok-2M | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Meteor-1 1 | Low Earth | Meteorology | 26 March 2012 | Successful | |||
27 March 10:40 [6] | Proton-K/D | Baikonur Site 81/23 | |||||
Mars 2M No.521 | Areocentric | Mars orbiter | 27 March 1969 | Failure | |||
Payload fairing failed at T+51. Third stage failed to ignite. | |||||||
27 March 22:22 [7] | Atlas SLV-3C Centaur-D | Cape Canaveral LC-36A | |||||
Mariner 7 | NASA | Heliocentric | Mars flyby | In orbit | Successful | ||
28 March 16:00 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 275 (DS-P1-I No.5) | RVSN | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 7 February 1970 [5] | Successful | ||
April | |||||||
2 April 10:33 [6] | Proton-K/D | Baikonur Site 81/24 | |||||
Mars 2M No.522 | Areocentric | Mars orbiter and lander | 2 April 1969 | Failure | |||
Rocket crashed near pad after 1st stage engine failure. | |||||||
4 April 10:20 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 276 (Zenit-4 No.55) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 11 April 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
4 April 13:00 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 277 (DS-P1-Yu No.20) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 6 July 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
9 April 13:00 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 278 (Zenit-2 No.73) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 17 April 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
11 April 02:30 [6] | Molniya-M/Blok ML | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Molniya-1 No.11 | Molniya | Communications | 17 April 1974 | Successful | |||
13 April 02:24 [7] | Atlas-SLV3A Agena-D | Cape Canaveral LC-13 | |||||
Canyon 2 (OPS 3148) | NRO | Geostationary | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
14 April 07:54 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-2E | |||||
Nimbus 3 | NASA, NOAA | Low Earth | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | ||
SECOR-13 | US Army | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful | ||
15 April 08:14 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 279 (Zenit-4 No.56) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 23 April 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
15 April 17:30 [8] | Titan IIIB | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
KH-8 Gambit 3 (OPS 5310) | USAF | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 30 April 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
23 April 09:55 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Kosmos 280 (Zenit-4M No.3) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 6 May 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
May | |||||||
2 May 01:46 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
KH-4A 51 (OPS 1101) | CIA | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 23 May 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
P-11 (OPS 1721) | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 16 February 1970 [5] | Successful | ||
13 May 09:15 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 281 (Zenit-2 No.74) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 21 May 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
18 May 16:49 | Saturn V | KSC LC-39B | NASA | ||||
Apollo 10 CSM Charlie Brown | NASA | Selenocentric | Crewed Lunar orbital flight | 26 May 1969 | Successful | ||
Apollo 10 LM Snoopy | NASA | Selenocentric | Test flight | In orbit | Successful | ||
First test of lunar module in lunar orbit. "Dress rehearsal" of Apollo 11 landing. | |||||||
20 May 08:40 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 282 (Zenit-4 No.57) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 28 May 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
22 May 02:00 [7] | Delta M | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | NASA | ||||
Intelsat III F-4 | Intelsat | Geostationary | Communications | In orbit | Successful | ||
23 May 07:57 [7] | Titan IIIC | Cape Canaveral SLC-41 | |||||
Vela 9, 10 | USAF | High Earth | Nuclear detection | In orbit | Successful | ||
OV5 5, 6, 9 | USAF | High Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
27 May 12:59 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 283 (DS-P1-Yu No.21) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 10 December 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
29 May 06:59 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 284 (Zenit-4 No.58) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 6 June 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
June | |||||||
3 June 12:57 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 285 (DS-P1-Yu No.22) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 7 October 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
3 June 16:49 [8] | Titan IIIB | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
KH-8 Gambit 3 (OPS 1077) | USAF | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 14 June 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
5 June 14:42 [8] | Thorad-SLV2H Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
OGO 6 | NASA | Low Earth | Research | 12 October 1979 [5] | Successful | ||
14 June 04:00 [6] | Proton-K/Blok D | Baikonur Site 81/24 | |||||
Luna E-8-5 No. 402 | Selenocentric | Lunar sample return | 14 June 1969 | Failure | |||
Blok D upper stage failed to ignite, thus leaving the payload on a suborbital trajectory. | |||||||
15 June 08:59 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 286 (Zenit-4 No.59) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 23 June 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
21 June 08:47 [8] | Delta E1 | Vandenberg SLC-2W | |||||
Explorer 41 (IMP-G) | NASA | Highly elliptical | Magnetospheric research | In orbit | Successful | ||
24 June 06:50 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 287 (Zenit-2 No.75) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 2 July 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
27 June 06:59 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Kosmos 288 (Zenit-4 No.60) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 5 July 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
29 June 03:15 [7] | Delta N | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
Biosatellite 3 | NASA | Low Earth | Life science | 7 July 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
July | |||||||
2 July 07:04 | Europa-1 | Woomera LA-6A | ELDO | ||||
STV-2 | ELDO | Test flight | 2 July 1969 | Failure | |||
3 July 20:18 | N1/L3 | Baikonur LC-110/38 | |||||
Zond L1S-2 | Selenocentric | Test flight | 3 July 1969 | Failure | |||
Dummy LK | Selenocentric | Mass simulator | 3 July 1969 | Failure | |||
Exploded due to faulty engines and a bolt that was sucked into a fuel pump. | |||||||
10 July 09:00 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 289 (Zenit-4 No.61) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 15 July 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
13 July 02:54 [6] | Proton-K/D | Baikonur Site 81/24 | |||||
Luna 15 (Ye-8-5 №401) | Selenocentric | Lunar sample return | 20 July 1969 | Success | |||
Lander crashed to the surface of the Moon in an attempted landing. | |||||||
16 July 13:32 | Saturn V | KSC LC-39A | NASA | ||||
Apollo 11 CSM Columbia | NASA | Selenocentric | Crewed Lunar orbital flight | 24 July 1969 | Successful | ||
Apollo 11 LM Eagle | NASA | Selenocentric | Crewed Lunar landing | In orbit | Successful | ||
First crewed Moon landing. | |||||||
22 July 12:30 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 290 (Zenit-2 No.76) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 30 July 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
22 July 12:55 [6] | Molniya-M/Blok ML | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Molniya-1 No.12 | Molniya | Communications | 18 June 1971 [5] | Successful | |||
23 July 04:39 [8] | Thor-LV2F Burner-2 | Vandenberg SLC-10W | |||||
DSAP-4B F3 (OPS 1127) | USAF, NRO | Low Earth | Meteorology | In orbit | Successful | ||
23 July 09:00 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
DS-P1-Yu No.23 | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 23 July 1969 | Failure | |||
Second stage failed at T+267 seconds. | |||||||
24 July 01:30 [8] | Thorad-SLV2H-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
KH-4B 7 (OPS 3654) | CIA | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 23 August 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
26 July 02:06 [7] | Delta M | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
Intelsat III F-5 | Intelsat | Geostationary | Communications | 14 October 1988 [5] | Failure | ||
Third stage failure left the spacecraft in an unusable orbit. | |||||||
31 July 10:19 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-1W | |||||
Strawman-2 (OPS 8285) | USAF | Low Earth | ELINT | 4 January 1973 [5] | Successful | ||
August | |||||||
6 August 05:40 [6] | Tsyklon-2 | Baikonur Site 90/19 | |||||
Kosmos 291 (IS-GVM) | Low Earth | Mass simulator | 8 September 1969 | Successful | |||
First test flight of Tsyklon-2 booster. Flew with a dummy payload planned to be used as an ASAT target but the ASAT interceptor test flight was later cancelled. | |||||||
7 August 23:48 [6] | Proton-K/Blok D | Baikonur Site 81/23 | |||||
Zond 7 | High Earth | Lunar flyby | 13 August 1969 | Successful | |||
The only successful test flight of Soyuz 7K-L1 spacecraft. Circumlunar flight, perilune 1,984 km. | |||||||
9 August 07:52 [7] | Delta N | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
OSO 6 | NASA | Low Earth | Solar observatory | 7 March 1981 [5] | Successful | ||
PAC 1 | NASA | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | 28 April 1977 [5] | Successful | ||
12 August 11:01 [7] | Atlas SLV-3C Centaur-D | Cape Canaveral LC-36A | |||||
ATS-5 | NASA | Geosynchronous | Communications | In orbit | Successful | ||
13 August 22:00 [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132/2 | |||||
Kosmos 292 (Zaliv No.3) | Low Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Successful | |||
16 August 11:59 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 293 (Zenit-2M No.4) / Nauka 5KS L.1 | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 28 August 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
19 August 13:00 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 294 (Zenit-4 No.62) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 27 August 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
22 August 14:14 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 295 (DS-P1-Yu No.24) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 1 December 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
23 August 16:00 [8] | Titan IIIB | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
KH-8 Gambit 3 (OPS 7807) | USAF | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 7 September 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
27 August 21:59 [7] | Delta L | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
Pioneer E | NASA | Heliocentric | Solar orbiter | 27 August 1969 | Failure | ||
TETR 3 | NASA | Low Earth orbit | Technology demonstration | 27 August 1969 | Failure | ||
First flight of Delta L rocket. First stage hydraulics failure threw the second stage far off course and the vehicle was destroyed by range safety at T+383 seconds. | |||||||
29 August 09:05 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 296 (Zenit-4 No.63) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 6 September 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
September | |||||||
2 September 11:00 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 297 (Zenit-4 No.64) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 10 September 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
15 September 08:40 [6] | R-36O | Baikonur Site 191/66 | |||||
Kosmos 298 (OGCh No.21) | Low Earth | Weapon test | 15 September 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
18 September 08:40 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 299 (Zenit-4 No.65) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 22 September 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
22 September 02:10 [11] | Lambda 4S | Kagoshima L | ISAS | ||||
Ōsumi-4 | ISAS | Low Earth | Test flight | 22 September 1969 | Failure | ||
22 September 21:11 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
KH-4A 52 (OPS 3531) | CIA | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 13 October 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
P-11 (OPS 4710) | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | 16 May 1971 [5] | Successful | ||
23 September 14:07 [6] | Proton-K/Blok D | Baikonur Site 81/24 | |||||
Kosmos 300 (Luna 16a, Ye-8-5 №403) | Selenocentric | Lunar sample return | 27 September 1969 [5] | Failure | |||
Blok D stage failed due to valve defect and the probe failed to leave Earth orbit. | |||||||
24 September 12:15 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 301 (Zenit-2 No.77) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 2 October 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
30 September 13:40 [8] | Thorad-SLV2G-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
Poppy 8A-D (NRL-PL 161-164) | NRL/US Navy | Low Earth | ELINT | In orbit | Successful | ||
NRL-PL 165 | NRL/US Navy | Low Earth | Technology demonstration | In orbit | Successful | ||
Timation-2 | NRL/US Navy | Low Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Successful | ||
Tempsat 2 | NRL | Low Earth | Calibration | In orbit | Successful | ||
SOICAL Cone & Cylinder | USAF | Low Earth | Calibration | Cone: In orbit Cylinder: 14 February 2023 [13] | Successful | ||
P-11 (OPS 7613) | USAF | Low Earth | Reconnaissance | In orbit | Successful | ||
October | |||||||
1 October 22:29 [8] | Scout-B | Vandenberg SLC-5 | |||||
ESRO 1B | ESRO | Low Earth | Research | In orbit | Partial failure | ||
Orbit was lower than planned. | |||||||
6 October 01:45 [4] | Vostok-2M | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Meteor-1 2 | Low Earth | Meteorology | 20 August 2002 [5] | Successful | |||
11 October 11:10 | Soyuz | Baikonur LC-31/6 | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 6 | RVSN | Low Earth | Crewed orbital flight | 16 October 1969 | Partial failure | ||
Rendezvous with Soyuz 7 and 8 unsuccessful due to electronic failure. | |||||||
12 October 10:44 | Soyuz | Baikonur LC-1/5 | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 7 | RVSN | Low Earth | Crewed orbital flight | 16 October 1969 | Partial failure | ||
Rendezvous with Soyuz 6 and 8 unsuccessful due to electronic failure. | |||||||
13 October 10:19 | Soyuz | Baikonur LC-31/6 | RVSN | ||||
Soyuz 8 | RVSN | Low Earth | Crewed orbital flight | 16 October 1969 | Partial failure | ||
Rendezvous with Soyuz 6 and 7 unsuccessful due to electronic failure. | |||||||
14 October [14] 13:19 | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Interkosmos 1 (DS-U3-IK No.1) | Interkosmos | Low Earth | Solar research | 2 January 1970 [5] | Successful | ||
17 October 11:45 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 302 (Zenit-4 No.66) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 25 October 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
18 October 10:00 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 303 (DS-P1-Yu No.25) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 23 January 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
21 October 12:49 [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132 | |||||
Kosmos 304 (Zaliv No.4) | Low Earth | Navigation | In orbit | Successful | |||
22 October 14:09 [6] | Proton-K/Blok D | Baikonur Site 81/24 | |||||
Kosmos 305 (Luna 16b, Ye-8-5 №404) | Selenocentric | Lunar sample return | In orbit | Failure | |||
Control system of the Blok D stage failed and the probe failed to leave Earth orbit. | |||||||
24 October 09:40 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 1/5 | |||||
Kosmos 306 (Zenit-2M No.5) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 5 November 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
24 October 13:01 [10] | Kosmos-2I | Kapustin Yar Site 86/4 | |||||
Kosmos 307 (DS-P1-Yu No.26) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 30 December 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
24 October 18:10 [8] | Titan IIIB | Vandenberg SLC-4W | |||||
KH-8 Gambit 3 (OPS 8455) | USAF | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 8 November 1969 [5] | Successful | ||
November | |||||||
4 November 11:59 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 308 (DS-P1-I No.6) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 4 January 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
8 November 01:52 [8] | Scout-B | Vandenberg SLC-5 | |||||
Azur | BMWF/DLR | Medium Earth | Ionospheric research | In orbit | Successful | ||
First West German satellite | |||||||
12 November 11:30 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 309 (Zenit-2 No.78) / Nauka 3KS L.1 | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 20 November 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
14 November 16:22 | Saturn V | KSC LC-39A | NASA | ||||
Apollo 12 CSM Yankee Clipper | NASA | Selenocentric | Crewed Lunar orbital flight | 24 November 1969 | Successful | ||
Apollo 12 LM Intrepid | NASA | Selenocentric | Crewed Lunar landing | 20 November 1969 | Successful | ||
Second crewed Moon landing. | |||||||
15 November 08:30 [6] | Voskhod | Baikonur Site 31/6 | |||||
Kosmos 310 (Zenit-4 No.67) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 23 November 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
22 November 02:00 [7] | Delta M | Cape Canaveral LC-17A | |||||
Skynet 1A | MoD | Geostationary | Communications (military) | In orbit | Successful | ||
24 November 11:00 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 311 (DS-P1-Yu No.27) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 10 March 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
24 November 16:49 [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132 | |||||
Kosmos 312 (Sfera No.5) | Low Earth | Geodesy | In orbit | Successful | |||
28 November 09:00 [6] | Proton-K/Blok D | Baikonur Site 81/23 | |||||
Soyuz 7K-L1E | Medium Earth | Flight test | In orbit | Failure | |||
First stage failure | |||||||
December | |||||||
3 December 13:20 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 313 (Zenit-2M No.6) / Gektor No.6 | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 15 December 1969 [5] | Successful | |||
4 December 21:37 [8] | Thorad-SLV2H-Agena-D | Vandenberg SLC-3W | |||||
KH-4B 8 (OPS 6617) | CIA | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 10 January 1970 [5] | Successful | ||
11 December 12:58 [4] | Kosmos-2I | Plesetsk Site 133/1 | |||||
Kosmos 314 (DS-P1-Yu No.28) | Low Earth | Radar calibration | 22 March 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
20 December 03:26 [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132 | |||||
Kosmos 315 (Tselina-O No.5) | Low Earth | ELINT | 25 March 1979 [5] | Successful | |||
23 December 09:25 [6] | Tsyklon-2 | Baikonur Site 90/19 | |||||
Kosmos 316 (I2P No.3) | Low Earth | Dummy ASAT warhead | 28 August 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
23 December 13:50 [4] | Voskhod | Plesetsk Site 41/1 | |||||
Kosmos 317 (Zenit-4MK No.1 / Germes No.1) | Low Earth | Optical imaging | 5 January 1970 [5] | Successful | |||
25 December 09:59 [10] | Kosmos-2I | Kapustin Yar Site 86/4 | |||||
Interkosmos 2 (DS-U1-IK No.1) | Interkosmos | Low Earth | Ionosphere research | 7 June 1970 [5] | Successful | ||
27 December [4] | Kosmos-3M | Plesetsk Site 132 | |||||
Ionosfernaya No.1 | Low Earth | Ionosphere research | In orbit | Failure |
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
January-March | |||||||
17 January [15] | Nike-Cajun | Esrange | NASA | ||||
/ RTG SNC 2A / 1 Aeronomy mission | NASA/RTG | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 17 January | Successful | ||
Apogee: 117 kilometres (73 mi). | |||||||
21 January [16] | Skylark 6 | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
UK SL781 Solar x-ray mission | RAE/WRE | Suborbital | Astronomy | 21 January | Failure | ||
23 January 20:00 [16] | Skylark | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
/ Ion / Te Ionosphere mission | RAE/WRE | Suborbital | Astronomy | 23 January | Successful | ||
Apogee: 149 kilometres (93 mi). | |||||||
23 January 23:00 [15] | Nike-Cajun | Esrange | NASA | ||||
/ RTG SNC 2A / 3 Aeronomy mission | NASA/RTG | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 23 January | Successful | ||
Apogee: 116 kilometres (72 mi). | |||||||
25 January 21:00 [15] | Nike-Cajun | Esrange | NASA | ||||
/ RTG SNC 2A / 4 Aeronomy mission | NASA/RTG | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 25 January | Successful | ||
Apogee: 118 kilometres (73 mi). | |||||||
3 February 21:05 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
Electrons Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 3 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 157 kilometres (98 mi). | |||||||
11 February 21:09 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
Electrons Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 11 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 157 kilometres (98 mi). | |||||||
14 February 22:15 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
Small scale structure Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 14 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 149 kilometres (93 mi). | |||||||
15 February 21:20 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
Small scale structure Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 15 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 153 kilometres (95 mi). | |||||||
20 February 11:48 [17] | Véronique | Kourou ALFS | LRBA | ||||
FU-170 CIRCE | CNES | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 20 February | Successful | ||
Apogee: 107 kilometres (66 mi) | |||||||
25 February 16:33 [18] | Centaure 2B | Andøya Rocket Range | |||||
ESRO C49 / 1 (R3) Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 25 February | Successful | |||
Apogee: 136 kilometres (85 mi). | |||||||
25 February 21:37 [18] | Sidewinder Arcas | Andøya Rocket Range | |||||
ESRO A40 / 4 Ionosphere / plasma / field mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 25 February | Failure | |||
25 February 23:50 [18] | Centaure 2B | Andøya Rocket Range | |||||
ESRO C49 / 2 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 25 February | Successful | |||
Apogee: 128 kilometres (80 mi). | |||||||
15 March 17:55 [15] | Nike-Apache | Esrange | Sandia | ||||
DLR K-NA-11 | DFVLR | Suborbital | Ionosphere research, Aeronomy | 15 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 226 kilometres (140 mi). | |||||||
15 March 20:54 [15] | Skylark 2 | Esrange | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S43 / 2 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 15 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: 211 kilometres (131 mi). | |||||||
15 March 22:31 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange | |||||
ESRO C52 / 1 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 15 March | Successful | |||
Apogee: 211 kilometres (131 mi). | |||||||
16 March 18:05 [15] | Nike-Apache | Esrange | Sandia | ||||
DLR K-NA-17 | DFVLR | Suborbital | Ionosphere research, Aeronomy | 16 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 233 kilometres (145 mi). | |||||||
17 March 00:04 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
Particles Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 17 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 151 kilometres (94 mi). | |||||||
17 March 18:10 [15] | Nike-Apache | Esrange | Sandia | ||||
DLR K-NA-18 | DFVLR | Suborbital | Ionosphere research, Aeronomy | 17 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 231 kilometres (144 mi). | |||||||
17 March 18:23 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
E field gradient Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 17 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 148 kilometres (92 mi). | |||||||
18 March 18:16 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
E-region E field Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 18 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 170 kilometres (110 mi). | |||||||
20 March 05:37 [19] | Terrier Sandhawk | Poker Flat Research Range | Sandia | ||||
HEMLOCK | DARPA | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 20 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 176 kilometres (109 mi) | |||||||
29 March 20:00 [15] | Petrel | Esrange | Bristol Aerospace | ||||
Small scale structure Ionosphere mission | SRC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 29 March | Successful | ||
Apogee: 150 kilometres (93 mi). | |||||||
April-June | |||||||
1 April 09:54 [16] | Skylark | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
X-ray Survey X-ray astronomy mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 1 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 192 kilometres (119 mi). | |||||||
3 April 00:35 [16] | Skylark 6 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
UK SL502 Ionosphere / solar x-rays mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 3 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 192 kilometres (119 mi). | |||||||
9 April 20:38 [18] | Nike-Apache | Andøya Rocket Range | Sandia | ||||
Ferdinand 20 Aeronomy / ionosphere / plasma mission | NTNF | Suborbital | Ionosphere research, Aeronomy | 9 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 139 kilometres (86 mi). | |||||||
13 April 00:33 [18] | Dragon 2B | Andøya Rocket Range | |||||
FU-182 Ions / Electric field Ionosphere mission | CNES | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 13 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 139 kilometres (86 mi). | |||||||
14 April 18:15 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C39 / 1 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 14 April | Failure | |||
15 April 11:03 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C39 / 2 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 15 April | Successful | |||
Apogee: 134 kilometres (83 mi). | |||||||
16 April [20] | Canopus 2 | CELPA | CONAE | ||||
CONAE | Suborbital | Test flight | 16 April | Successful | |||
First flight of Canopus 2 sounding rocket. Apogee: 150 kilometres (93 mi). | |||||||
17 April 05:05 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
UK SL606 Solar ultraviolet and x-ray mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 17 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 202 kilometres (126 mi). | |||||||
17 April 21:48 [18] | Dragon 2B | Andøya Rocket Range | |||||
FU-190 E field / Barium release / Ionosphere mission | CNES | Suborbital | 17 April | Successful | |||
Apogee: 329 kilometres (204 mi). | |||||||
22 April 03:31 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
UK SL604 Solar ultraviolet mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 22 April | Successful | ||
Apogee: 181 kilometres (112 mi). | |||||||
1 May [21] | Sandhawk Tomahawk | Pacific Missile Range Facility | Sandia | ||||
Sandia National Laboratories | Suborbital | Test flight | 1 May | Successful | |||
First flight of the Sandhawk Tomahawk configuration. Apogee: 528 kilometres (328 mi). | |||||||
14 May 02:44 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
UK SL404 Solar ultraviolet and x-ray mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 14 May | Successful | ||
Apogee: 178 kilometres (111 mi). | |||||||
24 May 05:52 [22] | Terrier Tomahawk | Pacific Missile Range Facility | Sandia | ||||
LRL BOX-16 TT-9 | Sandia National Laboratories | Suborbital | Astronomy | 24 May | Successful | ||
Apogee: 159 kilometres (99 mi) | |||||||
5 June 19:28 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C35 / 2 X-ray astronomy mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 5 June | Successful | |||
Apogee: 130 kilometres (81 mi). | |||||||
27 June 22:58 [23] | Black Arrow | R0 | Woomera LA-5B | RAE | |||
RAE | Suborbital | Test flight | 27 June | Failure | |||
Test flight with inert third stage. Lost control 50 seconds into the flight, destroyed by range safety. | |||||||
July-September | |||||||
5 July 19:45 [24] | Skylark | Salto di Quirra | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S38 / 1 Ionosphere mission | ESRO | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 5 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 200 kilometres (120 mi). | |||||||
6 July 19:50 [24] | Skylark 3 | Salto di Quirra | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S64 / 1 Aeronomy mission | ESRO | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 6 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 275 kilometres (171 mi). | |||||||
11 July 19:42 [24] | Skylark | Salto di Quirra | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S38 / 2 Ionosphere mission | ESRO | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 11 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 203 kilometres (126 mi). | |||||||
13 July 19:41 [24] | Skylark 3 | Salto di Quirra | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S64 / 2 Aeronomy mission | ESRO | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 13 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 280 kilometres (170 mi). | |||||||
14 July 23:53 [16] | Skylark | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Electron profile Ionosphere mission | BAC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 14 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 216 kilometres (134 mi). | |||||||
15 July [25] [26] | K63D | Vladimirovka near Kapustin Yar | |||||
BOR-1 | Suborbital | Re-entry test for the Spiral program | 15 July | Successful | |||
Subscale model of the Spiral spaceplane, transmitted data until burning up as planned at 60-70 km altitude. Apogee: 100 km [27] | |||||||
16 July 22:33 [16] | Skylark | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Dayglow / electrons Ionosphere mission | BAC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 16 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 244 kilometres (152 mi). | |||||||
24 July [28] | HAD | Woomera LA-1 | WRE | ||||
WRE | Suborbital | Test flight | 24 July | Successful | |||
Apogee: 115 kilometres (71 mi) | |||||||
25 July 04:10 [16] | Skylark | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Electron profile Ionosphere mission | BAC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 25 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 244 kilometres (152 mi). | |||||||
29 July 22:57 [16] | Skylark 3 | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Dayglow / electrons Ionosphere mission | BAC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 29 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 262 kilometres (163 mi). | |||||||
5 August 09:08 [29] | Aero High | Woomera LA-1 | WRE | ||||
WRE | Suborbital | 5 August | Successful | ||||
Apogee: 208 kilometres (129 mi) | |||||||
11 August 01:30 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C51 / 1 Aeronomy mission | ESRO | Suborbital | Aeronomy | 11 August | Successful | ||
Apogee: 112 kilometres (70 mi). | |||||||
14 August 02:01 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C58 / 1 Meteorites mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 11 August | Successful | |||
Apogee: 112 kilometres (70 mi). | |||||||
21 August 01:57 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
HRCS / PHC Solar x-ray mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 29 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 197 kilometres (122 mi). | |||||||
12 September [20] | Rigel | CELPA | CONAE | ||||
CONAE | Suborbital | Test flight | 12 September | Successful | |||
First test flight of Rigel sounding rocket. Apogee: 250 kilometres (160 mi) | |||||||
October-December | |||||||
5 October 22:28 [15] | Skylark 2 | Esrange | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S29 / 1 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 5 October | Successful | |||
Apogee: 225 kilometres (140 mi). | |||||||
10 October 20:01 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C52 / 2 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 10 October | Successful | |||
Apogee: 135 kilometres (84 mi). | |||||||
15 October 18:46 [16] | Skylark 3 | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Grenades / TMA/Barium release Aeronomy / ionosphere mission | BAC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 15 October | Successful | ||
Apogee: 318 kilometres (198 mi). | |||||||
17 October 09:15 [16] | Skylark 3 | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Grenades / TMA/Barium release Aeronomy / ionosphere mission | BAC | Suborbital | Ionosphere research | 17 October | Successful | ||
Apogee: 318 kilometres (198 mi). | |||||||
17 October 22:27 [15] | Skylark 2 | Esrange | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S29 / 2 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 17 October | Successful | |||
Apogee: 225 kilometres (140 mi). | |||||||
20 October 07:28 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
UK SL586 test | BAC | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | 20 October | Successful | ||
Apogee: 223 kilometres (139 mi). | |||||||
22 October 06:10 [16] | Skylark 3 | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
X-ray survey / Solar X X-ray astronomy mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 22 October | Successful | ||
Apogee: 216 kilometres (134 mi). | |||||||
23 October [20] | Canopus 2 | CELPA | CONAE | ||||
CONAE | Suborbital | Test flight | 23 October | Successful | |||
Apogee: 150 kilometres (93 mi). | |||||||
24 October 05:44 [24] | Skylark | Salto di Quirra | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S68 / 1 X-ray astronomy mission | ESRO | Suborbital | Astronomy | 13 July | Successful | ||
Apogee: 184 kilometres (114 mi). | |||||||
8 November [30] | Vesta | Kourou ALFS | LRBA | ||||
FU-189 Star pointing test | CNES | Suborbital | Technology demonstration | 8 November | Successful | ||
Last flight of the Vesta sounding rocket. Apogee: 204 kilometres (127 mi). | |||||||
10 November 21:00 [15] | Skylark 2 | Esrange | British Aerospace | ||||
ESRO S46 / 1 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 10 November | Successful | |||
Apogee: 214 kilometres (133 mi). | |||||||
18 November 02:17 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Fresnel shadowgraph X-ray astronomy mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 18 November | Failure | ||
Apogee: 208 kilometres (129 mi). | |||||||
20 November 00:30 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Solar ultraviolet Spectrum / PHC Solar ultraviolet and x-ray mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 20 November | Successful | ||
Apogee: 242 kilometres (150 mi). | |||||||
26 November 00:38 [18] | Nike-Cajun | Andøya Rocket Range | NASA | ||||
Ferdinand 21 Aeronomy / ionosphere mission | NTNF | Suborbital | Ionosphere research, Aeronomy | 26 November | Successful | ||
Apogee: 107 kilometres (66 mi). | |||||||
26 November 23:32 [16] | Skylark 3 AC | Woomera LA-2 SL | British Aerospace | ||||
Solar ultraviolet FP / PHC Solar ultraviolet mission | BAC | Suborbital | Astronomy | 26 November | Successful | ||
Apogee: 180 kilometres (110 mi). | |||||||
27 November 05:29 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C62 / 1 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 27 November | Successful | |||
Apogee: 160 kilometres (99 mi). | |||||||
27 November 06:31 [15] | Centaure 2B | Esrange C | |||||
ESRO C62 / 2 Aurora mission | ESRO | Suborbital | 27 November | Successful | |||
Apogee: 164 kilometres (102 mi). | |||||||
30 November 02:58 [18] | Sparrow-Arcas | Andøya Rocket Range | NASA | ||||
Arcas VII Aeronomy / ionosphere / plasma mission | NTNF | Suborbital | Ionosphere research, Aeronomy | 30 November | Successful | ||
Apogee: 100 kilometres (62 mi). | |||||||
6 December 06:00 [25] | K63D | Vladimirovka near Kapustin Yar | |||||
BOR-2 No.101 | Suborbital | Re-entry test for the Spiral program | 6 December | Successful | |||
Subscale model of the Spiral spaceplane. [31] Apogee: 100 km | |||||||
9 December [28] | HAD | Woomera LA-1 | WRE | ||||
WRE | Suborbital | Test flight | 9 December | Successful | |||
Last flight of HAD rocket. Apogee: 115 kilometres (71 mi). | |||||||
22 December [20] | Rigel | CELPA | CONAE | ||||
CONAE | Suborbital | Test flight | 22 December | Successful | |||
Apogee: 250 kilometres (160 mi) | |||||||
23 December [20] | Canopus 2 | CELPA | CONAE | ||||
CONAE | Suborbital | Test flight | 23 December | Successful | |||
Apogee: 150 kilometres (93 mi). |
Date and time (UTC) | Rocket | Flight number | Launch site | LSP | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Payload (⚀ = CubeSat) | Operator | Orbit | Function | Decay (UTC) | Outcome | ||
Remarks | |||||||
21 July 17:54 | Lunar Module Ascent Stage | Tranquility Base, Mare Tranquillitatis ( Luna ) | NASA | ||||
Apollo 11 LM | NASA | Selenocentric (CSM) | Crewed | In orbit | Successful | ||
Carrying two astronauts back to CSM after lunar landing | |||||||
20 November 14:25:47 | Lunar Module Ascent Stage | Ocean of Storms (Luna) | NASA | ||||
Apollo 12 LM | NASA | Selenocentric (CSM) | Crewed | 20 November | Successful | ||
Carrying two astronauts back to CSM after lunar landing |
Date (GMT) | Spacecraft | Event | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
16 May | Venera 5 | Atmospheric entry in Venus | Atmospheric probe worked for 53 min in the Venerian atmosphere |
17 May | Venera 6 | Atmospheric entry in Venus | Atmospheric probe worked for 51 min in the Venerian atmosphere |
21 May | Apollo 10 | 31 orbits around the Moon | Altitude ~15,4 km |
20 July | Apollo 11 | Moon landing | 22 kg from Mare Tranquillitatis (sample return mission) |
21 July | Luna 15 | Moon impact | Impacted at Mare Crisium (sample return mission). Primary mission failed. |
5 August | Mariner 6 | Flyby of Mars | Periapsis: 3,412 km. 25 close-up pictures. |
5 August | Mariner 7 | Flyby of Mars | Periapsis: 3,543 km. 33 close-up pictures. |
11 August | Zond 7 | Circumlunar flight | Periapsis: 1,984 km. |
19 November | Apollo 12 | Moon landing | 34 kg from Oceanus Procellarum (sample return mission) |
Start Date/Time | Duration | End Time | Spacecraft | Crew | Remarks |
---|
Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Europe | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
Japan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
Soviet Union | 82 | 68 | 14 | 0 | ||
United States | 41 | 37 | 2 | 2 | ||
World | 125 | 105 | 18 | 2 |
Family | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlas | United States | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
Blue Streak | Europe | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Kosmos | Soviet Union | 22 | 20 | 2 | 0 | |
Lambda | Japan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
N-1 | Soviet Union | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | First flight |
R-7 | Soviet Union | 44 | 43 | 1 | 0 | |
R-36 | Soviet Union | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
Saturn | United States | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Scout | United States | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Thor | United States | 22 | 20 | 2 | 0 | |
Titan | United States | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | |
Universal Rocket | Soviet Union | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 |
Rocket | Country | Family | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlas-Agena | United States | Atlas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas-Centaur | United States | Atlas | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Atlas E/F | United States | Atlas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Delta | United States | Thor | 11 | 9 | 2 | 0 | |
Europa | Europe | Blue Streak | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Kosmos-2 | Soviet Union | Kosmos | 15 | 14 | 1 | 0 | |
Kosmos-3 | Soviet Union | Kosmos | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | |
Lambda 4 | Japan | Lambda | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Molniya | Soviet Union | R-7 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
N-1 | Soviet Union | N-1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | First flight |
Proton | Soviet Union | Universal Rocket | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | |
R-36 | Soviet Union | R-36 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Saturn V | United States | Saturn | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Scout | United States | Scout | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Soyuz | Soviet Union | R-7 | 37 | 37 | 0 | 0 | |
Thor-Burner | United States | Thor | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
Thorad-Agena | United States | Thor | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | |
Titan III | United States | Titan | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | |
Tsyklon | Soviet Union | R-36 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
Vostok | Soviet Union | R-7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
Site | Country | Launches | Successes | Failures | Partial failures | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Baikonur | Soviet Union | 38 | 27 | 11 | 0 | |
Cape Canaveral | United States | 15 | 13 | 2 | 0 | |
Kapustin Yar | Soviet Union | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
Kennedy | United States | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
Plesetsk | Soviet Union | 41 | 38 | 3 | 0 | |
Kagoshima | Japan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
Vandenberg | United States | 22 | 20 | 0 | 2 | |
Woomera | Australia | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Orbital regime | Launches | Achieved | Not Achieved | Accidentally Achieved | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Low Earth | 85 | 81 | 3 | 1 | |
Geosynchronous / transfer | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | |
Medium Earth | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
High Earth | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | including highly elliptical and Molniya orbits and Trans Lunar trajectories |
Heliocentric | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
The year 1966 saw the peak and the end of the Gemini program. The program proved that docking in space and human EVA's could be done safely. It saw the first launch of the Saturn IB rocket, an important step in the Apollo program, and the launch of Luna 9, the first spacecraft to make a soft landing on a celestial object.
The year 1967 in spaceflight saw the most orbital launches of the 20th century and more than any other year until 2021, including that of the first Australian satellite, WRESAT, which was launched from the Woomera Test Range atop an American Sparta rocket. The United States National Space Science Data Center catalogued 172 spacecraft placed into orbit by launches which occurred in 1967.
The United States National Space Science Data Center catalogued 157 spacecraft placed into orbit by launches which occurred in 1968. The first crewed Apollo missions occurred in 1968. It was also the year in which Earth lifeforms first left low Earth orbit, during the successful Zond 5 mission to the Moon and the Zond 6 lunar mission which crashed upon return, and the year that humans first left low Earth orbit, during the successful Apollo 8 mission to the Moon.
Japan and China each launched their first satellites in 1970, bringing the total number of nations with independent launch capability to five.
Explorer 1 was the first American satellite to reach orbit on 31 January 1958.
1971 saw the last three known deaths of cosmonauts of the Soviet space program and the only deaths in space. Their mission was to man humanity's first space station. The experimental bay door failed to separate so the first crew failed to dock and second crew were killed on re-entry. 1971 also saw the launch of the first and only British satellite on top of a British rocket after that success the program was cancelled.
1972 saw humanity's last crewed mission to the Moon of the 20th century, Apollo 17.
1973 saw the launch of the first American Space station known as Skylab on a Saturn V rocket.
The following is an outline of 1981 in spaceflight.
The year 1986 saw the destruction of Space Shuttle Challenger shortly after lift-off, killing all seven aboard, the first in-flight deaths of American astronauts. This accident followed the successful flight of Columbia just weeks earlier, and dealt a major setback to the U.S. crewed space program, suspending the Shuttle program for 32 months.
This article outlines notable events occurring in 1994 in spaceflight, including major launches and EVAs.
This is a list of spaceflight related events which occurred in 1956.
On 29 March 1974 Mariner 10 became the first spacecraft to fly by Mercury, that saw a spacecraft for the first and last time in the 20th century.
In 1975, several notable events occurred in spaceflight, including the launches of Venera 9 and 10 and their Venus arrivals, the launches of the Viking Mars missions, the joint American-Soviet Apollo–Soyuz Test Project (ASTP), the failure of Soyuz 7K-T 39, and the launch of Aryabhatta, India's first satellite.
The following is an outline of 1976 in spaceflight.
The following is an outline of 1979 in spaceflight.
The following is an outline of 1980 in spaceflight.
This is a list of spaceflights launched between October and December 1962. For launches in the rest of the year, see 1962 in spaceflight (January–March), 1962 in spaceflight (April–June) and 1962 in spaceflight (July–September). For an overview of the whole year, see 1962 in spaceflight.